How It Feels Being Human in the World of AI.

I come from one of the last generations that knew life before smartphones, and after.

We grew up lost in our imaginations, arriving at our own made-up conclusions for questions AskJeeves couldn't answer. We read cereal boxes. We waited by the mailbox for birthday invites. We flipped through the Yellow Pages when mom needed a new vacuum or a lawn service.

Even then, I couldn't imagine how our parents got through college without Google.

Now the next generation will look at us like prehistoric dinosaurs, because we didn't have ChatGPT or Claude searching every database known to man to answer something as simple as "pancake recipe," or as complex as writing code that automates an entire job.

These days you scroll social media, blogs, emails, websites, even the news - and you know immediately when something is AI-generated.

The telltale em dash. The opening "Honestly…" or "Here's the thing." The three words stated boldly, confidently, and calm. The emojis. The seemingly endless attention to detail that doesn't quite follow the human range of emotion and depth.

No matter how much you may want to escape it… it's here.

And yet.

AI cannot look into the eyes of a stranger and leave them feeling seen.

It cannot remind someone they matter to this world. One that has driven itself apart through materialism and individuality. It cannot shift the energy of a room simply through genuine presence.

AI is here.

And you are still you.

And the world has never needed you more in your humanness. In your clumsy imperfection. The way you spill your morning coffee on your pants, or stub your toe on the doorway, or say something that comes out all wrong and have to repair it.

AI can make real-looking photos and videos. But it can't replace the iconic films of our lifetime. It can write copy that sounds human, sure. But is it actually relatable?

I think a lot of people are quietly afraid AI is going to take away their livelihood for good.

Maybe it will replace some jobs. Maybe it already has.

But it will never take your worthiness to create.

And this is exactly why retreats and in-person events will only grow.

Things are changing. Rapidly. But I don’t think we’re doomed.

We will learn to value new things, and if I'm being cautiously optimistic, maybe even the very things we lost at the beginning of this technology boom.

Maybe we'll remember to put our phones down and be present. Loving the people that matter, valuing human art over digital replicas. Maybe you'll find yourself seeking beauty in the trees and remember to feel your feet on the ground. Maybe our economy will shift to put money back into human-centered services.

There are real concerns that come with all of this, including environmental ones, and those matter too. But under all the fear, I still believe there is something deeply human that can’t be replicated.

But what do I know? 

Shoot me an email and let me know how you’ve been feeling with this AI boom.

Human to human. That’s one thing AI can’t take.